Community Forums

Eh-Jay · 09-12-2016, 09:32 AM

Hi Everyone,

New to the forum today. My wife and I have been looking to buy a bunk bed layout gasser for a while now and have been around to look at all kinds of new, used and abused stuff around the area. The unit we are looking at taking home tomorrow is a 2006 on the vin# however I think it's an 07 with a year older chassis and driveline as I can't find any info on the NewMar Canyon Star 3410 from 2006.

It's only got 29,000 miles on it, has been stored indoors, and seems to be in really good shape. I'm not familiar with Newmars but my father who's had motorhomes and toy haulers for years is going to come with us to look at it and has told me from his experience they (Newmar) are in a class of their own. (He doesn't own a newmar, but seems to have a lot of respect for them)

Anyways I was wondering if you could help me out with anything particular I should be looking for, or if anyone has a similar unit and are enjoying/regretting things. We don't want to jump in and buy a DP, it's just too much of an investment for us being our first MH. And a decent DP bunk model in our parts are way out of our price range. The 3410 is much older than we originally thought we would look at but it's at a price range we are comfortable with and we figure if we are going to buy older we should buy a good quality brand.

Any help is appreciated, I know for most folks what we are looking to spend is just a fraction of a new or late model DP, but it's a big investment for us and we just want to get some advice from the veterans. We want to start showing our two young kids more of North America and spending more quality family time together. And the grandparents want to bring their rig along for the fun too, we are just a little nervous/cautious about spending this kind of money on something we don't have a lot of knowledge about.

For reference we have looked at Forest River Georgetown SE's, Coachmen Mirada's, Hurricanes, Windsports and a few others.

Thanks in advance

Gary RVRoamer · 09-12-2016, 10:02 AM

Like your father, I generally have a lot of respect for Newmar products. That doesn't mean they are trouble-free, but they generally build to higher standards than any of the other brands you mentioned (with the possible exception of the Georgetown). And since this one is used, the only "quality" that makes much difference is the current condition and the quality of the care by its previous owner(s).

Look it over carefully and don't rush! Sit in it for a few hours and think about things like where to put the dirty clothes and the coffee pot. Get over the initial Ooohs and Aaahs and your eyes will begin to see more.

denverh · 09-12-2016, 10:51 AM

Although I don't own a Newmar I do know that their line is well respected and that they do build a quality unit. Also a few years old unit has the kinks ironed out of it by now and because of its quality should be in good shape. The fact that your father has a motorhome will certainly help in having an experienced set of eyes looking at the unit. As has always been stressed go with the layout first and then the other stuff. I have a bunk model Fleetwood Storm and just took my daughter and grandson on a trip, he's only two and a half and loves it. Started my daughter in a pop-up before she could walk and she loves to go out now. Good to hear that you youngins are seeing the benefits of exploring and family time together. Good luck with your search.

Mike and Cha · 09-12-2016, 11:01 AM

We love our Canyon Star and have only had a few very minor issues with it so far. We spent a lot of time looking( about 2 years) at every model new and used that we could. We bought new for several reasons, but we went with Newmar because in the gas MH Models, as well as the Diesel models, their quality is a cut above the rest, in the same price points. In my opinion Newmar does a great job in engineering the MH body to the chassis, which is very important and tends to make for a better drive and handling. As long as the floor plan works for you and it has been maintained correctly I wouldn't hesitate buying it. You won't be disappointed with a Newmar and if you take care of it properly it will last for a long time. We are really happy we went with Newmar and if we ever buy another MH it will definitely be a Newmar. Good luck and remember looking for one is half the fun of buying a MH.

Eh-Jay · 09-12-2016, 01:22 PM

Thanks everyone, really appreciate the comments.

My dad has a pretty good eye for anything thats off, and is wanting to be there to give it a good look through. I'm mechanically pretty technical and so I have a good handle on the running gear but the stuff bolted to the top of it...... yeah it's nothing I'm used to.

We are going to do as suggested and go at it with a slow and steady pace. Not get too excited and also accept that it's nearly 10 years old so we aren't buying perfection in the interior department. i just want to be sure the bones of the unit are solid and there isn't any delimitation, leaks, or strange things in that regard.

I'd love to buy new, and possibly one day will do that once the house is paid off. For right now this is a bit of an experiment for us. Our kids are young, but they absolutely lose their minds when we get to tag along with grandma/grandpa for a trip. We are hoping to take a full month this coming spring and head down to florida, do the disney thing then work up to Myrtle for a few more weeks and maybe up to Maine before returning home. Then it'll be weekend getaways for next summer and possibly another few weeks in the fall down south. We are north of the boarder so our pricing is a little crazy right now as the US dollar is bringing a lot of folks up to buy or dealers are shipping rigs south to get a better return.

Again thanks for the input folks, I'm sure I'll have lots more questions once we do nail something down, and as suggested we won't jump in too quick. At the same time hoping this one is decent.

vettenuts · 09-12-2016, 07:06 PM

Are you sure its a Canyon Star and not a Kountry Star? Didn't think the Canyon Star was out in 2006. That being said, I have a 2005 Kountry Star and we have enjoyed it for the two years we have had it. Fined out which chassis it is built on. The Workhorse chassis was excellent with a Vortec 8.1 and Allison transmission.

Kraft Crew · 09-13-2016, 09:54 PM

We bought a new 2008 Canyon Star 3410 in late 2007 and still own it. We were impressed by the quality that Newmar puts into their gas coaches. The only major issue we had was the Bosch brake recall that was resolved about three years ago at no cost to us. Ours is on a Workhorse W22 chassis with the Vortec 8.1 engine. We love the Workhorse and would recommend it although be aware that it is orphaned now and no longer manufactured. The V10 Ford was the other option back in 2008. I know that Canyon Star was around in 2007 and before that Newmar had a Scottsdale line.

Eh-Jay · 09-20-2016, 11:23 AM

Well we ended up buying it. Looked great, drove great, everything works on it (Except the wind sensor on the awning but I rear up and looks like thats pretty common)

It was definitely in 9/10 condition and had been well cared for and stored indoors. I've been working on a few little clean up areas and what not but we are headed out this weekend for our first adventure! Thanks again for all the help!